Cabinet doors for cabinets generally must be individually adjusted to compensate for manufacturing tolerances. Adjustment is usually required in more than one dimension. If the door has two or more hinges, as is usually the case, adjustments must be carried out on each hinge with respect to the other hinges. A “vertical adjustment” is required when the door does not seat properly with respect to the top and bottom of the cabinet frame. An “overlay adjustment” is a lateral or “side to side” adjustment required when the door does not properly align with the sides of the cabinet frame. A horizontal or an “in and out” adjustment required when the door does not lay flush with the cabinet frame.
Prior art hinges suffer from various disadvantages including difficulty in installation, insufficient adjustment capabilities, instability of the adjustments made, complicated construction, and high manufacturing costs.
U.S. Pat. No. 6,647,591 to Domenig et al. discloses a low profile, partial door overlay hinge having a hinge cup, an intermediate base hinge and top hinge arm segments. In order to accomplish adjustments in three dimensions, this device requires a complicated assembly necessitating several assembly connection points. Further, multiple cam screws or eccentric cam screws are required to effectuate the adjustments. All of the above increases the manufacturing complexity and cost of the device.
U.S. Pat. No. 6,694,567 to Domenig et al. discloses an overlay hinge having a hinge cup, a base hinge arm segment and an L-shaped hinge arm segment. This device requires multiple plate hinge arm segments to achieve the three-dimensional adjustment capability. The device of the '567 patent also requires multiple intricate and expensive pieces requiring complex assembly steps and hardware to function as an adjustable hinge.
U.S. Pat. No. 5,920,958 to Domenig, et al. discloses an adjustable furniture hinge having a hinge cup, a hinge arm and a hinge plate. The hinge arm is pivotally connected to both the hinge cup and the hinge plate. The number of hinge arm segments is lessened, but the intricate parts and the complex assembly remains while the hinge only accommodates a vertical adjustment and a horizontal overlay adjustment.
U.S. Pat. No. Re. 34,995 to Domenig discloses an adjustable recessed door hinge having a hinge cup in a bore in a door member and a hinge arm securable to a cabinet member. The hinge cup has two slotted holes for receiving attachment screws that guide displacement of the hinge cup for a side-to-side adjustment. The invention of the '995 patent requires the adjustment of at least two mounting screws per hinge used to mount the hinge cup in order to effectuate a horizontal overlay adjustment. After repeated adjustment as is required to secure and adjust a door, the fit of newly inserted screws becomes unstable which ultimately results in an insecure mounting of the door on the cabinet.